Essay On America's Obese Future
America’s Obese Future
Our world today, it seems all people are doing is eating out and sitting on the couch. The influx of easily available junk food is causing people to gain weight at a much higher rate than in previous years. This might be because people are ill-informed about what they are putting into their bodies and what the consequences are of them eating poorly. While this poor diet could be counter-balanced with exercise, many people are falling short of their recommended daily regimen. Readily available food and soda has become a newer phenomenon in the last couple of decades, and it continues to become larger problem every year. This is something not many people think about, but it is a problem because more and more people are choosing to eat fast food instead of staying home and cooking healthy meals …show more content…
that include such lean protein and steamed vegetables. Clearly, people must change their eating habits and exercise more to compensate for unhealthy eating habits because this will help them become healthier and more sufficient.
Undoubtedly, we are all known to finish off that last row of Oreos when we should have only had one cookie. Over the decades, women especially, have changed drastically in the eyes of society. It was thought a century ago, that if someone was overweight, they were wealthy, but this idea has changed over the years. In the twenty-first century, for women to be healthy they must be small and perhaps skinny, completely opposite of what was thought only one hundred years previously. The question then asked is whether the idea that men and women, specifically women, are considered overweight or obese because of the views of society. While people are continuing to evolve, so are the societal beliefs. For instance, in the title “The Obese Client: Myths, Facts, Assessment, and Intervention” the authors say “Efforts to shape societal attitudes and beliefs about how much people should weigh have been so successful that some professionals have adopted the industry’s biases” (1). Although, societies portrayal of what “healthy” is may change, scientist can agree that eating healthy and exercising isn’t a bad thing and can positively correlate with being productive and sufficient. Sadly, so many Americans are overweight and are dying at an earlier age than in any other period in modern history and many people are asking themselves, why?
In the article entitled “The Role of Parents in Public Views of Strategies to Address Childhood Obesity in the United States” written by J.A. Wolfson et al., the author states; “American children has a shorter life expectancy than does their parent’s generation” (qtd. J.A. Woldson et al. 74). Wolfson elaborates on the importance of eating healthy and exercising correctly, otherwise, more and more people will be overweight. Perhaps being overweight at a job could result in an injury that otherwise would not occur. If they were injured on the job, they would be getting a pension more than likely, and would be out of work while healing. This would cause the unemployment rate to go up, and the government handout rate would increase drastically as well. The United States economy would take a hit, not at first, but along a series of years. If the national debt does not fix this rapidly growing situation, the age expectancy will go down tremendously and the efficiency will decline as
well. Furthermore, obesity is a problem in America, it is not only affecting adults, but children as well. Many people believe parents should be held responsible for their children being overweight. For example, it is stated that “Parents play the primary role in influencing and guiding their children and, indeed, have a vested legal responsibility to do so” (J.A. Wolfson et al. 75). If the parents bring sodas and junk food into the house, the children are going to choose to eat what taste good and not what is healthy. While it is the parents’ responsibility to make sure their child is eating right, it is also their responsibility to make sure their child is exercising every day for at least sixty minutes. This is where so many people fall short and the consequence is that their child is overweight. This is just one of the many reasons why so many people, including children, are obese. While many people are overweight, it does not help that some people do not have readily available fruits and vegetables yet they can easily get chips and soda. There have been articles written to evaluate the proximity of fast food restaurants and the proximity of healthy places such as Farmers Markets to populations that have high obesity rates. For instance, in the article entitled “Measuring the Food Environment and its Effects on Obesity in the United States: A Systematic Review of Methods and Results” written by Ryan J. Gamba, Joseph Schuchter, Candace Rutt, Edmund Y. W. Seto, says “Thirty-seven percent of findings from studies analyzing the association between the frequency of fast food restaurant stores and obesity found a positive correlation” (469). By having fast food restaurants so close, people are choosing to eat what is convenient not what is a healthy choice. This is yet another reason why so many people are overweight and unhealthy. Moreover, obesity is an issue and something must be done to improve people’s health and lives. The American National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) indicates that the prevalence of obesity in children has more than doubled in recent years. There appears to be a disturbing trend among overweight children. The NHANES has noted that heavier children are becoming more obese instead of losing weight. Studies indicate that physical activity is a learned behavior primarily from parents. There appears to be a correlation between parental fitness and physical activity and the influence it has on their children. In the article written by K.S. Steinbeck “The importance of physical activity in the prevention of overweight and obesity in childhood: a review and an opinion” the author states “Physical activity is the discretionary component of energy expenditure and there is evidence that falling levels of physical activity are contributing to the obesity epidemic” (117). By eating healthy and exercising, less people will be obese and will be healthier and more sufficient.
Furthermore, in the article titled “United States Food Law Update: The FDA Food Safety Modernization Act, Obesity And Deceptive Labeling Enforcement” the authors A. Bryan Endres and Nicholas R. Johnson reported “In December 2010, President Obama signed into law The Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010 a child nutrition bill that provides for healthier food choices at public schools” (qtd. A. Bryan Endres and Nicholas R. Johnson 139). By having this bill put in place, President Obama hoped to have an impact on reducing childhood obesity by enabling children to have the option to make healthy food choices. The article “The weight dilemma: A range of philosophical perspectives” Neumark-Sztainer states; “Thus, there is probably general consensus that a child with a genetic predisposition towards obesity, who lives in a social environment in which caloric-dense food is easily accessible, and whose family tends to be sedentary is at increased risk for obesity” (32).
Therefore, the hope is that the child obesity rate will decline by having these options put in place for children. By making smart eating choices, people will be allowed to be healthier and more sufficient. Clearly, eating habits greatly influence overall health in an individual but physical activity is an important component in the equation. Recent studies indicate that a decreased level of physical activity is contributing to the obesity epidemic. While some people may try to eat healthy, they need to increase their overall exercise level as well. By doing this they will be losing weight and burning calories which they intake from eating. This is a solution that doctors are more apt to recommend. This is because it is the healthiest choice for their bodies and is the safest way to live a fit and healthy lifestyle. By exercising at least three times a week for an hour each time, a person will ensure success and they will be more sufficient in their daily lives. While many people do understand the correlation between physical activity and weight loss, they are reluctant to follow through on the necessary life adaptations to succeed in weight loss. Author J.S. Puterbaugh states in the article “Reducing Societal Obesity: Establishing a Separate Exercise Model through Studies of Group Behavior” include that:
…at a minimum, over 80 percent of the population needs to increase activity for both health and weight benefits to accrue. The 50 years of work the medical professions have spent developing the exercise prescription, implementing it, testing and retesting it, evaluating and writing about it in professional and nonprofessional publications and speaking about it to any listening ear has made no measurable impact on either activity levels or levels of obesity (4).
By increasing the number of people who engage in physical activity, the rate of obesity will go down, therefore, people will be much healthier and more sufficient. However, a solution that not many people think about is food stamps. Consumers that are deemed poverty level are typically on a food assistance program and they may make poor choices. Instead of choosing to use their food stamps for fruits and vegetables, they are using them on unhealthy choices such as chips and sodas because they are less expensive food options. The United States could fix this issue by not allowing people to purchase unhealthy foods and drinks with food stamps. This will force people on food stamps to start eating fruits and vegetables instead of using their food stamps on junk food. In the article “Child to adult socioeconomic conditions and obesity in national cohort” the authors C Power, O Manor, and S Matthews found a correlation between socioeconomic status and adult obesity. “A significant social class gradient was evident for women by age 16 y, with increasing prevalence of fatness from classes I and II to Classes IV and V. “ At age 23 y, for example, the risk of fatness increased by 38% (men) and 39% (women) for each increment in social position from classes I and II to classes IV and V” (1083). By fixing what people can purchase with food stamps, it will help people that are overweight, make better choices, therefore, making people healthier and more sufficient. Although, most of these solutions fix the problem after it has occurred, teaching children about nutrients and healthy habits early will help them make good choices and be healthier. For example, in the article titled “Assessing Risk Factors for Obesity Between Childhood and Adolescence: I. Birth Weight, Childhood Adiposity, Parental Obesity, Insulin, and Leptin” written by Arline D. Salbe, Christian Weyer, Robert S. Lindsay, Eric Racussin et. Al. says “This study indicates that early childhood obesity is the most potent predictor of obesity five years later, suggesting that to be effective, intervention to prevent obesity in childhood and adolescence must begin at a very early age” (305). This study provides evidence on why it is vital to teach young children, as soon as they start grade school, the importance of eating healthy, and getting their nutrients. By teaching children healthy habits, it enables them to grow up and continue to be healthy because it was engrained in them the importance of eating correctly and how to do so.
In essence, people must change their ways and become more health conscious while making smart eating choices to be more sufficient. It is the United States responsibility to educate children and teach them healthy eating and lifestyle choices which can enable them to develop healthy eating habits for life. Nutrition education, such as understanding food labels, nutrition information and appropriate calorie intake are all vital pieces of the educational foundation that will reap benefits for future generations and help ensure that the children of today are healthy and will go on to do great things.
Our world today, it seems all people are doing is eating out and sitting on the couch. The influx of easily available junk food is causing people to gain weight at a much higher rate than in previous years. This might be because people are ill-informed about what they are putting into their bodies and what the consequences are of them eating poorly. While this poor diet could be counter-balanced with exercise, many people are falling short of their recommended daily regimen. Readily available food and soda has become a newer phenomenon in the last couple of decades, and it continues to become larger problem every year. This is something not many people think about, but it is a problem because more and more people are choosing to eat fast food instead of staying home and cooking healthy meals …show more content…
that include such lean protein and steamed vegetables. Clearly, people must change their eating habits and exercise more to compensate for unhealthy eating habits because this will help them become healthier and more sufficient.
Undoubtedly, we are all known to finish off that last row of Oreos when we should have only had one cookie. Over the decades, women especially, have changed drastically in the eyes of society. It was thought a century ago, that if someone was overweight, they were wealthy, but this idea has changed over the years. In the twenty-first century, for women to be healthy they must be small and perhaps skinny, completely opposite of what was thought only one hundred years previously. The question then asked is whether the idea that men and women, specifically women, are considered overweight or obese because of the views of society. While people are continuing to evolve, so are the societal beliefs. For instance, in the title “The Obese Client: Myths, Facts, Assessment, and Intervention” the authors say “Efforts to shape societal attitudes and beliefs about how much people should weigh have been so successful that some professionals have adopted the industry’s biases” (1). Although, societies portrayal of what “healthy” is may change, scientist can agree that eating healthy and exercising isn’t a bad thing and can positively correlate with being productive and sufficient. Sadly, so many Americans are overweight and are dying at an earlier age than in any other period in modern history and many people are asking themselves, why?
In the article entitled “The Role of Parents in Public Views of Strategies to Address Childhood Obesity in the United States” written by J.A. Wolfson et al., the author states; “American children has a shorter life expectancy than does their parent’s generation” (qtd. J.A. Woldson et al. 74). Wolfson elaborates on the importance of eating healthy and exercising correctly, otherwise, more and more people will be overweight. Perhaps being overweight at a job could result in an injury that otherwise would not occur. If they were injured on the job, they would be getting a pension more than likely, and would be out of work while healing. This would cause the unemployment rate to go up, and the government handout rate would increase drastically as well. The United States economy would take a hit, not at first, but along a series of years. If the national debt does not fix this rapidly growing situation, the age expectancy will go down tremendously and the efficiency will decline as
well. Furthermore, obesity is a problem in America, it is not only affecting adults, but children as well. Many people believe parents should be held responsible for their children being overweight. For example, it is stated that “Parents play the primary role in influencing and guiding their children and, indeed, have a vested legal responsibility to do so” (J.A. Wolfson et al. 75). If the parents bring sodas and junk food into the house, the children are going to choose to eat what taste good and not what is healthy. While it is the parents’ responsibility to make sure their child is eating right, it is also their responsibility to make sure their child is exercising every day for at least sixty minutes. This is where so many people fall short and the consequence is that their child is overweight. This is just one of the many reasons why so many people, including children, are obese. While many people are overweight, it does not help that some people do not have readily available fruits and vegetables yet they can easily get chips and soda. There have been articles written to evaluate the proximity of fast food restaurants and the proximity of healthy places such as Farmers Markets to populations that have high obesity rates. For instance, in the article entitled “Measuring the Food Environment and its Effects on Obesity in the United States: A Systematic Review of Methods and Results” written by Ryan J. Gamba, Joseph Schuchter, Candace Rutt, Edmund Y. W. Seto, says “Thirty-seven percent of findings from studies analyzing the association between the frequency of fast food restaurant stores and obesity found a positive correlation” (469). By having fast food restaurants so close, people are choosing to eat what is convenient not what is a healthy choice. This is yet another reason why so many people are overweight and unhealthy. Moreover, obesity is an issue and something must be done to improve people’s health and lives. The American National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) indicates that the prevalence of obesity in children has more than doubled in recent years. There appears to be a disturbing trend among overweight children. The NHANES has noted that heavier children are becoming more obese instead of losing weight. Studies indicate that physical activity is a learned behavior primarily from parents. There appears to be a correlation between parental fitness and physical activity and the influence it has on their children. In the article written by K.S. Steinbeck “The importance of physical activity in the prevention of overweight and obesity in childhood: a review and an opinion” the author states “Physical activity is the discretionary component of energy expenditure and there is evidence that falling levels of physical activity are contributing to the obesity epidemic” (117). By eating healthy and exercising, less people will be obese and will be healthier and more sufficient.
Furthermore, in the article titled “United States Food Law Update: The FDA Food Safety Modernization Act, Obesity And Deceptive Labeling Enforcement” the authors A. Bryan Endres and Nicholas R. Johnson reported “In December 2010, President Obama signed into law The Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010 a child nutrition bill that provides for healthier food choices at public schools” (qtd. A. Bryan Endres and Nicholas R. Johnson 139). By having this bill put in place, President Obama hoped to have an impact on reducing childhood obesity by enabling children to have the option to make healthy food choices. The article “The weight dilemma: A range of philosophical perspectives” Neumark-Sztainer states; “Thus, there is probably general consensus that a child with a genetic predisposition towards obesity, who lives in a social environment in which caloric-dense food is easily accessible, and whose family tends to be sedentary is at increased risk for obesity” (32).
Therefore, the hope is that the child obesity rate will decline by having these options put in place for children. By making smart eating choices, people will be allowed to be healthier and more sufficient. Clearly, eating habits greatly influence overall health in an individual but physical activity is an important component in the equation. Recent studies indicate that a decreased level of physical activity is contributing to the obesity epidemic. While some people may try to eat healthy, they need to increase their overall exercise level as well. By doing this they will be losing weight and burning calories which they intake from eating. This is a solution that doctors are more apt to recommend. This is because it is the healthiest choice for their bodies and is the safest way to live a fit and healthy lifestyle. By exercising at least three times a week for an hour each time, a person will ensure success and they will be more sufficient in their daily lives. While many people do understand the correlation between physical activity and weight loss, they are reluctant to follow through on the necessary life adaptations to succeed in weight loss. Author J.S. Puterbaugh states in the article “Reducing Societal Obesity: Establishing a Separate Exercise Model through Studies of Group Behavior” include that:
…at a minimum, over 80 percent of the population needs to increase activity for both health and weight benefits to accrue. The 50 years of work the medical professions have spent developing the exercise prescription, implementing it, testing and retesting it, evaluating and writing about it in professional and nonprofessional publications and speaking about it to any listening ear has made no measurable impact on either activity levels or levels of obesity (4).
By increasing the number of people who engage in physical activity, the rate of obesity will go down, therefore, people will be much healthier and more sufficient. However, a solution that not many people think about is food stamps. Consumers that are deemed poverty level are typically on a food assistance program and they may make poor choices. Instead of choosing to use their food stamps for fruits and vegetables, they are using them on unhealthy choices such as chips and sodas because they are less expensive food options. The United States could fix this issue by not allowing people to purchase unhealthy foods and drinks with food stamps. This will force people on food stamps to start eating fruits and vegetables instead of using their food stamps on junk food. In the article “Child to adult socioeconomic conditions and obesity in national cohort” the authors C Power, O Manor, and S Matthews found a correlation between socioeconomic status and adult obesity. “A significant social class gradient was evident for women by age 16 y, with increasing prevalence of fatness from classes I and II to Classes IV and V. “ At age 23 y, for example, the risk of fatness increased by 38% (men) and 39% (women) for each increment in social position from classes I and II to classes IV and V” (1083). By fixing what people can purchase with food stamps, it will help people that are overweight, make better choices, therefore, making people healthier and more sufficient. Although, most of these solutions fix the problem after it has occurred, teaching children about nutrients and healthy habits early will help them make good choices and be healthier. For example, in the article titled “Assessing Risk Factors for Obesity Between Childhood and Adolescence: I. Birth Weight, Childhood Adiposity, Parental Obesity, Insulin, and Leptin” written by Arline D. Salbe, Christian Weyer, Robert S. Lindsay, Eric Racussin et. Al. says “This study indicates that early childhood obesity is the most potent predictor of obesity five years later, suggesting that to be effective, intervention to prevent obesity in childhood and adolescence must begin at a very early age” (305). This study provides evidence on why it is vital to teach young children, as soon as they start grade school, the importance of eating healthy, and getting their nutrients. By teaching children healthy habits, it enables them to grow up and continue to be healthy because it was engrained in them the importance of eating correctly and how to do so.
In essence, people must change their ways and become more health conscious while making smart eating choices to be more sufficient. It is the United States responsibility to educate children and teach them healthy eating and lifestyle choices which can enable them to develop healthy eating habits for life. Nutrition education, such as understanding food labels, nutrition information and appropriate calorie intake are all vital pieces of the educational foundation that will reap benefits for future generations and help ensure that the children of today are healthy and will go on to do great things.